Meeting of the Heads of the SCO Counternarcotics Agencies

Heads of SCO drug control agencies discuss regional cooperation

Meeting of the Heads of the SCO Counternarcotics Agencies

On April 21, 2015, a Meeting of the Heads of the SCO Counternarcotics Agencies took place in Moscow under Russia's SCO Presidency. The Russian delegation was led by State Anti-Drug Committee Chair and Federal Drug Control Service Director Viktor Ivanov.

The meeting focused on cooperation in combatting illegal drug production and drug trafficking, carrying out the Programme of Action for the Implementation of the SCO Counternarcotics Strategy for 2011-2016 and progress made within the framework of the SCO three-tier mechanism for anti-drug cooperation.

The participants unanimously approved the Russia-proposed draft statement by the SCO member states emphasising the need to eradicate large-scale drug production in Afghanistan, an alternative development model for drug-producing states and strengthening the traditional drug control regime. The document will be submitted to the SCO Heads of State Council Meeting for consideration.

Furthermore, the participants made the decision to move forward with the development of a new SCO Counternarcotics Strategy for 2017-2022.